Rotary barrel-sprinkling machine.



J. Mt'rLLER, JR. ROTARY BARREL SPBINKLING MACHINE.

APELIOATION FILED MAY 23, 1908.

Patented Feb. 2, 1909.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

J. MfiLLER, JR. ROTARY BARREL SPRINKLING MACHINE. APPLICATION I'ILBD MAY 23, 190a.

91 1,320, Patented Feb. 2, 1909.

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J. Mt'I LBR, JR. ROTARY BARREL SPEINKLING MACHINE.

AYYLIOATION FILED MAY 23, 1908.

Patented Feb. 2, 1909.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

UNITED STATES PATENT oEEioE.

JACOB MELLEE, in, or NEW YORK, N. Y., AssIGNoR T0 CAROLINE H. MULLER,

OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

ROTARY B ARREL-SPRINKLlING-l MACHINE Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 2, 1909.

suitable driving shaft on a stationary plat form, and in which simultaneously the sprinkler-nozzles, located in each barrelsupport, are rotated on their axes bypinions at their lower ends which mesh with a stationary gear-wheel. is supplied to the sprinkler-nozzles by acentral distributing valve and radial connecting pipes, while the waste water is conducted bysuitable pipesfrom the barrel-supports to a circular gutter and then to the waste-pipe. The objections to this class of barrel-sprinkling machines consists mainly in the unsatisfactory working of the central distributing valve for the reason that when'the same is adjusted too ti 'htly in its casing the working of the machine is impeded and sometimes entirely stopped, while when the distributing valve is adjusted too loosely in its casing, an annoying leakage and loss of hot and cold water, required for the sprinkling operation takes place.

The object of this invention is to supply an improved construction of distributing valve for the hot and cold water, which when properly adjusted works in a very reliable and eifective manner, without either retarding or stopping the motion of the sprinkling machine or causing the leakage of the valve when the same is either set too tightly or too loosely; and for this purpose the invention consists in an improved construction of the distributing valve for rotary barrel-sprinkling machines of the horizontal type, which valve-construction will be fully described hereinafter and finally pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 The hot and cold water.

represents a perspective view of my improved rotary barrel sprinkling machine, Fig.2 is a side elevation, partly in vertical central section, drawn on a larger scale, Fig. 3 is a detail vertical central section through the central distributing valve, Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the arrangement of the inlet and outlet channels for the hot and cold Water-supply and the points of putting on and taking. off the barrel, Fig. 5 is a detail vertical central section of the rotary main-portion of the distributing valve, Fig. 6 is a plan-view of the same, Fig. 7 is a topview of the upper portion of the distributing valve, Fig. 8 is a vertical transverse section of the same on line 8, 8, Fig. 7, Fig. 9 is a top-view of the lower. portion of the distributing valve, Fig. 10 is a side-view of the same, Fig. 11 is a top view of the intermediate disk-portion of the distributing valve, located between the main-portion and lower portion; and Fig. 12 is. a side-view of Fig. 11.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several figures.

Referring to the drawings, a represents a circular gutter the inner circumference of which is provided with inwardly-projecting brackets 04 to which are attached radial channel-bars (4 said channel-bars forming a cross-shaped stiffening frame for the gutter a. At the center of the channel-bar frame a is supported a water-collecting pan 6, which is attached to the channel-bars by suitable bolts 6 and to which is attached the lower portion of the central distributing valve '0. From the approximately-cylindrical main-portion '0 of the distributing valve 12 extend radial and somewhat upwardly-inclined water supply-pipes d which communicate with the lower parts of cup shaped barrel-supports e the upper edges of which are made concave or arc-shaped so as to support the barrels placed in position thereon. The shanks of the barrel-supports c are supported equidistantly from each other on a ring-shaped frame 6 which moves on rollers r, the shafts of which are supported in bearings r and hangers 1 below the barrel-supports, over a circular rail r at the inner circumference of the gutter a, said rollers being located at the inside of the ringshaped frame 6?, as shown clearly in section on the left. hand. side, of Fig. 2. To the outer circumference of the ring-shaped frame e? is applied a worm-gear-wheel e which intermeshes with a worm w that is located on the driving shaft 5-, said driving shaft being supported in bearings of suitable standards located near the point where the barrels are placed on the barrel-supports. The worm it) receives rotary motion by a suitable beltand-pulley transmission from an overhead shaft or from an electric or other motor placed directly on the shaft 8.

In each barrel-support is arranged a cell tral vertical sprinkler-pipe 71, the slitted or perforated upper end or nozzle of which projects slightly above the barrel-support, and the middle portion of which is supported in a stutling-box 01- located at the upper end of the elongated hub n of the barrel-support. The lower portion of the sprinklerpipe is slotted and connected with the outer end of the radial water-supply pipe (Z, while the downwardly extending shaft-portion of the sprinkler-pipe n passes through a second stuiiing-box a at the lower end of the sprinkler-pipe supporting hub a and is provided with a pinion p which meshes with a rack 29 that is located at the outer circumference of the inner wall of the gutter, adjacent to the track-rail r for the rollers r. The pinions 7) are moved in planetary mo tion around the gear-wheel 79 by the motion imparted to the ring-shaped frame 6 by the worm and worm-gear transmission, and transmit thereby rotary motion to the sprinlrler-pipes on their axes so as to distribute the water ejected by the nozzles of the same in the usual manner over the interior of the barrels for sprinkling and cleaning the interior of the same.

The machine so far described is well known and for the most part described in Letters Patent No. 881,575, dated March 10, 1908. The improved feature consists in the construction of the central distributing valve o. This valve consists of four portions: a main-portion c which is connected by four radial channels o with the radial watersupply pipes cl, an upper portion 21 of the disk-shape which is provided with two interiorly-threa ded sockets c for the hot water and cold water supply-pipes f, f a lower portion 12 which is provided with outlet-' channels 0 for the water, and an intermediate disk-shaped portion. n which is interposed between the bottom of the main portion and the lower or base-portion v The main portion n is rotated on its axis by the motion imparted to the ringshaped frame 6 and the barrel-supports by the worm gear transmission, while the upper portion and the lower and intermediate portions are supported in stationary position at the center of the channel-bar frame a by a center-post g which is splined to the upper portion n and the lower and intermediate portions a r, as shown clearly in Fig. 8. The mainportion r turns by its central opening on the center-post 6/, the opening being large enough for preventing any friction of the main-pen tion with the center-post. Into the upper end of the center-post g is inserted a screw bolt of smaller diameter, which is threaded at its upper and lower ends and provided with a shouldered collar between which and the part "0 is interposed a helical spring 9, of considerable strengtl'u which is com' pressed by a. screw-nut 9 that is applied to the upper threaded end of the post so as to regulate the pressure of the spring on the upper portion o and hold the latter, as wcll as the intermediate and lower POl'tlOlIw, tightly in contact with the main-portion 1:. The parts 1 and u are preferably made of composition metal for the purpose of resist ing wear between them and the rotating part c: and the latter part is provided at its upper and lower ends with recesses into which the parts I). r iit snugly in order to form a water-tight connection. The parts n", 2' are made separate from each other. so thatthe whole lower part of the valve does not have to be made out of cinnposition metal. and also for the reason that the wcarresisting part a" can be replaced when worn out without requiring an entire new bottompart for the *alve. All the portions of the valve u are provided with central ()])(11llll. for the center-post and the portions v 1- and v with grooves for the splines connect ing them with the center-post g. The mainportion n is further provided with the four radial channels o which have T shaped inner ends, the upper ends of which channels are connected with segmental. channels 1"" at the underside of the upper portion c". which channels conm'iunicate with the hot and cold water-supply pipes f, f, while the lowcr ends of the T-shaped channels connnunicato with outletmitts 0 in the intermediate portiono and 0 in the lower portion '1" through which ports the aste hot and cold water remaining in the pipes is drained oil into the collecting pan 7) and from the same by a connecting pipe to the circular gnltcr c. The outlet-ports are formed simply in the upper flange of the base-piece n" as shown in Fig. 10, and do not extend downwardly entirely through the same. so tl at the water after passing through the upper llangc passes down at the outer face of the middle part of the base-piccc n into the collecting pan. which is immediately below the latter. The outer ends of the T-shaped channels communicate with the radial water supplypipes (Z. The water collected in the barrel supports after sprinkling the barrels. is drawn off by drain-pipes (3 into the gutter a.

l. l l) areas When the ring-shaped frame with the barrel supports and radial supply-pipes ls rotated by the worm gear transmission, the main-portion of the distributing valve is also rotated with the same around the center-post. When a barrel is placed'on the first barrel-support, the rotation of the middle portion of the valve produces the supply of hot water from the hot-water pipe through the T-shaped channel and its water supply-pipe to the axially-rotating sprinkler-pipe, so that a supply of hot water is conducted to the interior of the barrel on the support for the distance shown in the diagram, Fig. 4, until the upper end of the T-shaped channel in the main-portion has passed the segmental channel in the upper portion and cuts off the water-supply. By the continuation of the rotation of the middle portion of the distributing valve, the hot water in the radial supply-pipe is drawn oil' through the outlet-ports in the intermediate and lower portions of the valve and drained off into the collecting pan 6 and from there to the circular gutter. By the continuation of the rotary motion of the main-portion, the second segmental channel at the underside of the upper portion of. the valve is placed in communication with the upper end of the T-shaped channel of the main-portion and in connection with the cold water supply-pipe, so that cold water is supplied from the distributing valve to the sprinkler-pipe of the barrel-support and the barrel washed out with cold water, while, as soon as the end of the segmental channel is passed, the cold water is out OK, the cold water in the barrel being then drained off through the channels and ports of the main, intermediate and lower portions into the collecting pan and gutter, until the barrel-support arrives at the point where the barrel is taken 0d, at which point the cleaned barrel is removed and a new barrel placed in position on the barrehsupport, as the same moves forward to the putting-on point, as shown in the diagram, Fig. 4:. s As there are four barrel-supports, four. barrels are successively sprinkled with hot and cold water during each full rotation of the ring-shaped supporting frame, the cleaned barrels being removed at the take-oil point and new barrels placed on the barrel-supports as they arrive successively at the putting-on point for the new barrel. In this manner an intermittent sprinkling and washing of the interior of the barrels with hot and cold water is obtained, the machine requiring only one attendant who puts the barrels to be cleaned on the barrel-supports and removes the washed barrels at the taking-0H point. Each barrel passes successively first, through a sprinkling with hot water, then through a period of draining Oil the hot water, then through a sprinkling with cold water, and then through a period of draining off the cold water after which the barrel is taken ofi" from the support.

As the portions composing the central distributing valve are accurately ground at their faces and held in frictional contact with each other by the center-post and pressure-spring, the rotation of the machine is not interrupted nor is there any leakage during the rotation of the main-portion of the valve. The action of the sprinkling machine is thereby made absolutely safe and the entire working of the machine rendered effective and reliable.

The improved distributing-valve can be readily inserted in machines provided with the old-style of conical valves, so that the machines heretofore in use can be brought to a high degree of perfection and effectiveness.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. In a machine for sprinkling barrels, the combination of a rotary frame having barrel-supports, supply-pipes extending to said barrels-supports, and a distributing valve to which said pipes are connected comprising a rotary main-portion having T- shaped channels leading to said pipes, means to supply water to the upper branches of said channels for flushing out the barrels, and means for collecting the water which is drained off from the barrels by means of the lower'branches of said T-shaped channels."

2. In a machine for sprinkling barrels, the combination of a distributing valve comprising a rotary main-portion provided with T-shaped channels, an upper portion provided with inlets for hot and cold water and coacting with said main-portion to alternately admit and cut-ofi' the hot and cold water to the upper branches of the T-shaped channels, a lower valve-portion having openings which are uncovered during the rotationof said main-portion and then communicate with the lower branches of'said T-shaped channels, supply-pipes connected with the lateral branches of said channels, and sprinkling pipes'to which said supplypipes are connected.

3. In a machine for sprinkling barrels, the combination of a distributing valve comprising a rotary main-portion provided with T-shaped channels, a stationary upper portion having segmentalchannels alternately brought into and out of register with the upper branches of said T-shaped channels, supply-pipes for hot and cold water connected with said upper portion and communicating with said segmental channels, a

stationary lower portion having outletopenings which register with the lower branches of said T-shaped channels when the segmental channels are out of register therewith supply-pipes connected with $2116.

with said snpply-plpes.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing g as my invention, I have signed my name in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JACOB MULLER, JR.

\Vitnessee PAUL GOEPEL,

Hnrzm' J. SUI-.[IKRIEI-I. 

